Mayor advocates to keep Depot Park building
<p>The city of Whitefish is looking at whether or not its building in Depot Park should be torn down. The Depot Park master plan calls for eventually removal of the building, which houses the city's planning and building, and parks and recreation departments. (Heidi Desch / Whitefish Pilot)</p>
Whitefish will re-examine an option to remove the city parks and planning building from Depot Park.
The city’s Depot Park master plan, approved in 2012, calls for the removal of the city building as part of a goal to create more open, green space in the park. City Council March 7 decided it wants the removal of the building brought back to the table for discussion.
“I respect the process the Park Board and steering committee members went through to develop the Depot Park master plan, and in fact, I was part of the approval process,” Mayor John Muhlfeld said.
“But the city’s needs have changed, and I think it’s important to ask ourselves if a plan that seemed reasonable years ago is still in the best interest of the city today, and in this case, I do not.”
Council is asking for the original steering committee that created the master plan and the Park Board to reconsider that portion of the plan. Any changes would have to go through a public process, and Council would ultimately have to vote on any update to the plan.
The planning and parks departments are set to move into the new City Hall building once its constructed in 2017. However, some city officials say the building could be a source of revenue for the city and at some point city offices may need to again occupy that space.
Muhlfeld said leasing the building could provide an estimated $35,000 to $45,000 per year, which the city could use to offset some unanticipated costs for the parking structure construction.
“It makes economic sense, and fiscally, it’s the responsible decision to make at this time,” he said. “Someday, it may make sense to tear down the building and complete the full vision of the Depot Park Master Plan, but right now, it just doesn’t make economic sense to me and it’s not the responsible decision to make.”
Councilor Richard Hildner disagreed that the plan needs to change.
“A lot of hard work went into the master plan and the objective of that was to create open space,” Hildner said. “We need to honor that. We’re fooling ourselves if we think that will generate lease revenue.”
Councilors Frank Sweeney, Andy Feury and Katie Williams all said they are interested in taking another look at plans to remove the building.
“We’re in a different place than we were several years ago,” Sweeney said. “The needs of the city have changed.”
“I support initiating the process because our circumstances have changed,” Williams added. “This is the fiscally responsible thing to do.”
During public comment, Rhonda Fitzgerald said if the city wants to generate revenue it would be better off selling the park, rather than keeping the building.
“Removing that building was the cornerstone of that plan,” she said. “There would be no reason to own that park if we keep that building there because we bought that park to create more economic vitality and to connect downtown to the Depot and that building prohibits seeing the Depot.”
Jeff Raper, Whitefish Chamber of Commerce board member, said chamber is interested in relocating its offices to the city’s building.
“The chamber sees a use for the planning building and that is simply as a great location for the chamber,” he said. “It’s a focal point for people parking downtown and where people can come to get visitor information.”
In addition to the chamber, Muhlfeld said, the Whitefish Convention and Visitors Bureau would be an ideal candidate to rent space in the building.
“Consolidating and centrally locating these organizations to our downtown core would provide greater customer service to both our visitors and our residents,” he said.
City Manager Chuck Stearns pointed out that retaining the building could be useful for the city in the long-term.
“It gives us more options in the future,” Stearns said. “We could move the parks and recreation department back there if we do run out of space.”
Muhlfeld said the city is growing along with demand on city services and it’s important to provide future Councils with options. The existing Depot Park building would be an cost-effective alternative to adding a third story to the new City Hall, he noted.